Aindale KTD

Today, we're shining the spotlight on Shaun Curran, one of our account managers!

Is your WiFi signal weaker in some parts of your office than others? If so, it can often be caused by WiFi coverage or interference, which happens when there are physical obstructions or long distances between your access point and your device. Now, since you can’t exactly make your office smaller, or knock down a few walls to let your WiFi signal reach your devices more easily – what can you do? Wireless Access Points can be placed around your office to extend your WiFi signal’s range. They connect directly to your network via an Ethernet cable and are placed in areas of your office with a weaker signal. They extend the WiFi coverage around your office, and if implemented correctly, get rid of those annoying little pockets of weak connection. If you feel you need more than one access point, you can have multiple. But if you’re not sure where to put them, you can contact us on 01484 518899 and we’ll conduct an assessment for you.

Our IT Control package aims to manage and monitor your overall IT infrastructure. You could think of it as an all-in-one IT service encompassing IT support, management, and planning. It includes services such as: Unlimited IT Support: Give us a call any time for any IT related queries, no matter how big or small the problem, we can help. You will also have access to on-site engineer callouts where required at no extra charge. Patch management: Keep your devices up to scratch with regular patches and updates managed by us. Managed Security Software: Having security software on all of your devices is a must for cyber safety, we’ll keep yours up-to-date and ready to protect your systems. IT Strategy Reviews: Annual strategy reviews and quarterly service reviews to plan the future of your IT infrastructure. Discounted Hourly Rates: Receive a discounted hourly rate for any on-site or remote labour we carry out for you. If you want us to take control of your IT, give us a call on 01484 518899.

Have you ever connected to public WiFi? Perhaps you were at a cafe, getting some work done. Or maybe you were at a shop and had to check your online banking before making your next big purchase. But do you know how secure that WiFi network was? The likely answer is no. People don’t often think about the security of a public network before they join it, even though unsecure networks can pose a number of risks, including: -     Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) Attacks: In a MITM attack, the criminal intercepts communication between your device and the internet. This allows them to capture data such as account passwords. -     WiFi Snooping/Sniffing: Cybercriminals can buy software that helps them eavesdrop on unsecure WiFi signals. This could allow them to view webpages you’ve visited and even capture login credentials. -     “Evil Twin” Attacks: Cybercriminals can set up their own WiFi network and give it a deceptive name, such as “CafeGuestWiFi”. Then, you may mistake this as a legitimate WiFi network and sign in to their fake access portal. From here, the hacker could monitor your behaviour and steal the data you access on their malicious network. So, if you join public WiFi, do consider the use of a secure VPN service to ensure the safety and security of your usage. If you don’t know where to start, give our team a call on 01484 518899, and we can help you.

Have you ever been sitting in your office, peacefully working on something, and then suddenly you realise that your computer or laptop sounds like it’s about to take off? 🚀 An unusually loud device could mean a few things:       - Your device is overheating, so its fans are spinning faster to cool it down. This can sometimes be caused by having a lot of apps running on your device at once, which causes more processing power to be required. -     Your device is accumulating dust, which is clogging its fans and other components. This makes them work harder, and thus produce more noise. -     Your device's hard drive or fans are faulty. Still can’t figure out the source of your computer’s loud whirring? Give us a call on 01484 518899 to speak to one of our IT support technicians, and they’ll help you get to the bottom of it.

Do you and your team take good care of your PCs? Whilst it might be tempting to just leave your computer be and trust it will be fine, doing your part to extend its lifespan can save you money on replacements and repairs. There are a few things you can do to help your computer live a long and healthy life: 1.    Update your PC regularly. Updates often provide security patches that, if not installed, can leave your PC vulnerable to attacks. If you’re with us and on our IT control package, don’t worry – we’ll take care of this for you. 2.    Shut down your PC at the end of every day, excluding patching days. Shutting down your PC is important to give it a proper refresh – we all need a rest sometimes. Just be sure to consult your IT team or support provider to ensure you know when to leave it on for updates and patches. 3.    Try to keep your physical device free of dust and debris. A build up of contaminants in your computer can result in overheating and cause damage in the long term. 4.    Make sure you have an up-to-date security software running on your computer. This helps protect it from computer viruses that could otherwise harm its performance, or even harm your data. 5.    Uninstall apps that are outdated or no longer used. This will both free space on your computer and reduce your attack surface for cyber criminals.

Today, we're highlighting one of our technical support consultants, Nick Coburn!

When it comes to phishing, education is the best defence. A phishing attack’s biggest weakness is that it needs the victim to interact with it, if they don’t, the attack fails. So how can you train your employees to spot phishing emails and stop them from harming your business? Phishing simulation. Our phishing simulation platform aims to give your team real world experience with phishing emails, without any of the risk. Your team will receive consistent bite-size phishing training, in the form of short videos, games, and quizzes to complete when they have a moment between tasks. Alongside their training, they will also be sent imitation phishing emails on a regular basis. They’ll be able to report these with a ‘phishing alert’ button that will be added to their email software. If a simulated phishing email is reported using this button, the user will be congratulated on their vigilance. Otherwise, the email will be sent to our support team for review. Phishing simulation ultimately provides: -  Security Awareness: Your employees will know the dangers of phishing emails and how to discern them from genuine emails. -  Compliance: Security standards such as ISO27001 mandate ongoing security awareness training, which phishing simulation counts towards. -  Measurable results: You’ll get a report at the end of every month detailing who, in your team, interacted with phishing emails and who completed their assigned training. If you’re interested in teaching your workforce how to recognise and report phishing emails, give us a call on 01484 518899.

A lot of the things you do with your mouse, could probably be done with your keyboard instead – and in less steps. Key combinations are essentially shortcuts, made up of 2 or more keys on your keyboard, that allow you to perform useful functions on your computer or laptop. Take a look at some of the most helpful ones below.

Don’t store your passwords in your browser’s password manager. Whilst it can be tempting, especially if you’re cyber savvy and have a different password for every account you own, it simply isn’t all that safe. Browser encryption methods are very basic. They use one (not very well hidden) encryption key to unlock your entire password list. Any experienced hacker could easily get hold of it when on your system. Not to mention, if your browser got hacked, the perpetrator would be able to see your passwords in plain text - just like you can. So how can you securely store all of your passwords? With a password manager. Our password manager stores you credentials in a password vault protected by military grade (AES-256) encryption. The only way you can access this vault is with your master password, which is an extremely secure password with a recommended minimum length of 16 characters. There’s also the option to add 2 factor authentication for even further security. It is a standalone application, so if a hacker does gain access to any other software, such as your browser - your passwords will still be safe. Password managers come with a host of other useful features too, such as: -  Secure password generation -  Secure Team password sharing -  Credential autofill -  And more If you need a secure, convenient way to store your passwords, get in touch with us on 01484 518899.